2017 Scholar-Athletes: Jack Schafer, Adrian

Saturday

Jul 1, 2017 at 12:00 PM

Greg Garno Daily Telegram Special Writer

Jack Schafer never thought about how he balanced that time in the classroom, where he earned a 4.115 GPA and finished 13th in his class, or how he balanced his time running, where he earned Division 2 All State honors.

He just went out and balanced the two aspects of school as long as he can remember. After a while, he said, “it becomes a habit.”

Schafer kept to his routine, staying focused in school, working on the track, then coming home to do homework, because that’s what he had trained himself to do. And for that work in and out of the classroom, The Daily Telegram has selected Schafer as Adrian’s top scholar-athlete.

“It was just an expectation that I had of myself,” Schafer said. “I knew that if I wanted to be the best I could, I had to keep up in school. … I think a key for me was surrounding myself with the right people.“Really, I think you are who you surround yourself with. So if you surround yourself with dedicated, hard-working people, then you’re going be dedicated and hard working.”

Schafer surrounded himself with that strong core of people year round, running cross country, indoor track and outdoor track. Schafer is a three-time Division 2 state qualifier in cross country, earning All-State honors once. This year, Schafer ran in the Division 2 track state meet for the first time, taking home All-State honors in the 3,200-meter run.

A captain in both cross country and track, Schafer has been named MVP of the both teams twice, and for the past two years, he has been named the Tory Clark Outstanding Male Performer at the Lenawee County Track and Field Championships.

Impressively, he’s accomplished all of that while battling injuries for the past three years. This year, Schafer said, was really the first full year he could dedicate to both sports.

“I’m impressed with what he’s been able to overcome with injuries,” said Adrian track and field coach Jim Waters. “There was a drive, after missing states last year, putting in the miles staying on top of his workouts all while staying on top of his grades.”

A longtime assistant coach and head coach at Adrian, Waters is “not going to reinvent the wheel” when it comes to fostering success on and off the track. It’s part of that environment Schafer speaks highly of and embraces.

Schafer was awarded the President’s Award for educational excellence, having been a part of the National Honor Society, Varsity-A Club and Project Unify, while volunteering to work the Special Olympics and the Boys and Girls Club.

He rarely carried the stresses of class onto the track, and the workouts from track into the classroom. When he was asked to run three different distances in track, Schafer agreed without complaining about the added workload.

It set an example for younger runners, Waters said, making an impact beyond the Maples’ 5-0 record in dual meets.

“Jack rose to that occasion,” Waters said. “He was always asking what we needed. And on the side, he was doing the extra things that set him above the average athlete.”

And during a season in which he was fully healthy for the first time, Schafer was just thrilled to run. With his teammate and friend Dontae Edwards running the last leg for the 1,600-meter relay, and victory already sealed, the pair began screaming at the final turn.

“I wanted to be a team contributor, and it took a while to get there,” Schafer said, “but I think having people expect you to work hard and do well, it can be a good thing.”

Moments like those are the ones that stand out to Schafer, the reward for that routine he’s set for himself.

He’ll attend the University of Michigan in the fall and work toward a business degree. He said he hopes to be a part of the club triathlon team.

But he isn’t planning on changing the habit he’s set for himself. That part will always stay the same.

“Once it becomes normal, it is what it is,” Schafer said.

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